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Tewksbury board blocks housing proposal

TEWKSBURY -- Qualms with density, traffic, location and more prompted the Board of Selectmen earlier this month to vote against partnering with a developer on a 40B project on Astle Street.

The 77-unit affordable housing project proposed at Astle Street and Main Street was brought forth by developer James Andella. It did not get the support of the Board of Selectmen for the Local Initiative Project in a 4-1 vote. Anne Marie Stronach was the only selectman to vote in favor of a partnership. Andella, however, still has the opportunity to pursue the project at the state level.

For the past few months, the project has been before the Planning Board and public workshop on the project. Selectman Chair Jay Kelly said he did not support the project because of its potential impact in town.

"I personally felt due to the nature of the size and scope of the development, we had any unanswered questions about the impact," Kelly said. "When I make a decision, it has to be in the best interest of all the residents. I've talked with residents that live up in that area and I was just echoing their concerns."

The proposal was looking to construct three four-and-a-half story buildings, each with 25 rental units. Parking would be beneath the buildings. In addition, there is an existing two-unit structure already on site. The 3.2-acre property is in the heavy industrial and commercial districts.

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Being a member of the Local Housing Partnership, which endorsed a LIP, influenced Stronach's vote last week. Although Stronach also wants to see a small project proposed, she said it did not seem to be an interest of the developer.

"I absolutely understand where the concerns were regarding the partnership with the builder, but I felt that, similar to the Local Housing board, that it would be best if the town did have some say in the project, rather than no say at all," Stronach said. "I felt that if someone is going to be putting in a project of that magnitude for a 40B, I would like the town to have some input."

Currently, the town is under the 10 percent threshold for affordable housing, at 9.7 percent.

Selectman Todd Johnson said his major concern with the project was the developer's experience.

"My view was that he had never done a 40B project before and while he has many, many years of development experience, he's never done any project to the size and scale of this proposal," Johnson said. "Because of the town would become a partner in a collaborative sense with the developer, I had concerns about his ability to deliver and we would be putting the town's reputation at risk."

Some concerns residents have expressed had to do with traffic congestion in the area, preserving trees and the safety of the intersection of Pike and Astle streets. Donna Higgins, who lives on Astle Street, said the development would cause a traffic nightmare.

"Astle Street can't handle this kind of traffic, period," she said. "Astle Street is already and dangerous corner and it's just not the right fit for Tewksbury for safety."

Kelly said while there is a need for affordable housing in town, this is not the appropriate project to address the issue.

"No one's against affordable housing. No one is," Kelly said. "As a matter of fact, we're trying our best to get to that 10 percent threshold that is required by the state. If a project is reasonable and makes sense for the community, then we would form a business partnership."

Last month, the Planning Board recommended that Andella consider a reduction in the number of units for the project. The board was also concerned with accessibility around the buildings for the fire department, traffic flow and backups, and that the installation of a traffic light may be necessary.

"I was very pleased with the board's vote," Higgins said. "They recognize that the Tewksbury residents do not want this to be a city. We want to keep this as much as a town as possible."

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